Home remedies to keep summer pests at ease

By Lindsey Martinez |Staff Writer|

What’s there to complain about summertime activities such as lazy beach days in the sunshine, and warm nights filled with barbecues?

The answer is the pesky problems that come with these activities: sunburns, jellyfish stings, mosquito bites, heartburn, allergies and etc.

The great news is that there are plenty of at-home remedies to help cure these bothersome problems.

Got too much sun at the beach and feel like your skin’s on fire? Never fear, according to a spokesperson for the American Academy of Dermatology, a lukewarm bath filled with oatmeal will soothe the stinging pain you feel on your skin.

Other interesting at-home remedies for sunburns include such things as applying yogurt on the burnt area, placing sliced apples on a sun burnt face, spraying a mix of cooled freshly brewed black tea and peppermint on the burnt area, or making a paste from water and cornstarch to apply on the burn, according to homeremedies.com.

Although at times a sun burn can feel like life’s greatest discomfort, there are few things in life more irritating than waking up from a warm summer night’s sleep to find your body covered in itchy mosquito bites.

Believe it or not, the remedy for these bites can be found in the cupboard! All that is needed is a box of baking soda mixed with water to make a paste; apply the paste on the bite and viola the pain is gone!

“The paste can act as an astringent to help relieve the symptoms of itching and pain,” says Dr. Annie Chiu, a dermatologist at the Murad Inclusive Health Medical Group.  According to homerememdy.org, add salt to the paste for even more relief from the itching.

Other solutions to stop the itching from bug bites include rubbing vitamin E directly on the bite, squeezing the juice out of a honeysuckle vine onto the bite or rubbing toothpaste on the itching area.

“Growing up my mom always told me the easiest way to stop the itching of a bug bite is to make an ‘X’ with your fingernail on the bite.  I don’t know if it truly works or if it’s all in my head, but I really think it lessens the pain!” said student Kamerin Bateman.

Another painful summer encounter can be jellyfish stings! But rest assured, there are other ways to cure the pain other than urine!

In fact, all you need to do is remove the tentacles and pour white vinegar on the sting and pain will subside. Dr. Chiu says that the white vinegar releases the venom which minimizes the pain of the sting.

Now that the pain from sun burs, bug bites and jelly fish stings have gone away, looks like it’s time to enjoy an infamous summertime barbecues. But wait!

When the heartburn and indigestion associated with barbecues foods comes creeping up after the meal, remember that the solution is just one fruit away; eating a few slices of papaya after a barbecues will help to soothe the pain and indigestion.

Use these cheap and helpful hints to say goodbye to pesky problems and hello to summertime bliss.